


And Lucifer Did Fall

by RegalPotato



Category: Galavant (TV)
Genre: Angst, Canon Continuation, Dark, Dragons, F/M, I mean it, Magic, Minor Galavant/Isabella, Minor Richard/Roberta, Physical Abuse, it's dark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-12
Updated: 2017-03-12
Packaged: 2018-09-23 15:37:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9663845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RegalPotato/pseuds/RegalPotato
Summary: They say Lucifer fell, because he loved God more than all the rest. Perhaps that is why she knew that the way she loved would destroy her too.Galavant continuation fic. My own (dark) take on Season 3.





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> This was the first Galavant fic I started writing, way back in February of last year. Finally got around to fixing it up (my writing has improved a lot over the last year) and I wanted to start publishing chapters. Whilst it is my own take on Season 3, it obviously focuses mostly on Madalena and Maddie/Gareth.
> 
> I will try to update this every Sunday.

**Present**

Madalena slumped ungracefully onto her bed, body aching and head pounding. She groaned, throwing an arm over her eyes and breathing deeply. Every day spent in the DEL’s castle left her feeling more and more drained. The magic he’d been teaching her so far didn’t seem to be overly taxing, but that didn’t stop her from feeling fatigued as soon as the day ended.

She wasn’t the only magic user the DEL had agreed to train. The Dark Evil Lord had many other apprentices, male and female, as well as a handful of servants who obeyed his every whim. But everyone else, Madalena included, had to pretty much fend for themselves. There were no handmaidens, no one to serve her food, no one to clean her clothes; Madalena almost felt like she was back at the beginning, a simple peasant girl having to kill and cook her pet goat to survive. Except, this time, she didn’t have Galavant. This time she didn’t have anyone. She was no one special here, and she was certainly a queen no longer.

Madalena felt the unusual tight feeling in her chest that she’d come to associate with _feelings_. She clenched her jaw, inhaling deeply to try and force back the swell of emotions.

She had told Gareth the truth on the Hortensian cliffside. All she’d wanted, ever since she was a child, was power. Power to not feel weak, power to treat people in whichever way she wanted to. And the draw of ultimate power D’Dew had given her had been far too much to resist, regardless of how she felt about Gareth. Because with her army fallen, and Wormwood defeated, all she had left was her magic, and without full control how could she protect herself - and, part of her whispered, how could she protect Gareth. Galavant and Richard wouldn’t have let her run free, regardless of what Gareth had seemed to believe; her only option had been to leave, to gain enough control over her power so she didn’t _need_ an army.

The tight feeling in her chest worsened and she sighed, rolling onto her front and grabbing her not-silk pillow. Dwelling on her past, dwelling on _Gareth_ , wasn’t going to make her feel any better. Dwelling on how she’d failed and fled, leaving him for a place where she had even less power than when she’d been ruling by his side was _definitely_ not going to make her feel any better. Dwelling on how he’d probably moved on and forgotten all about her in the last few weeks…

She buried her face into the cotton fabric, grinding her teeth together painfully to focus on something other than the burning feeling in her throat.

And yet, now she submitted to the DEL, more than she’d ever submitted to anyone. He was a cold and dangerous man, and his word was law. Whilst he was indeed training her in her magic, and she was growing stronger each day - regardless of her persistent fatigue - she had less power over people than she’d had as Galavant’s girl, let alone as Richard or Gareth’s queen. _Gareth’s queen._

She clenched her eyes shut, ignoring what were definitely not tears pricking at her eyes, and forced all thoughts from her mind, hoping that for once sleep would claim her fully before the DEL demanded more from her in the morning.

**  
**\--  
**  
****  
** **Three Weeks Ago**

Barry’s life was going well. For some reason, even though he’d been Chester Wormwood’s main assistant, everyone seemed perfectly happy to have him around. The wedding he’d planned and organised for Galavant and Isabella had been spectacular, and perhaps that’s why both Richard’s Kingdom and Valencia had promoted him to being _the_ wedding planner to go to if you wanted to get hitched. King Richard himself had recently paid Barry a visit, nervously mumbling about his plans to propose to Bobbi, and wondering if one thousand doves was a reasonable number. It wasn’t, but Barry was sure something could be arranged.

Richard had even given him rooms in his castle, which Barry had gratefully accepted considering he had nowhere else to stay. Yes, life was going well - especially since nobles and royals paid him handsomely for his trade. He smiled, flipping a gold coin into the air before catching it again. He flipped it a second time, only for the coin to clatter to the floor as Barry looked up straight into the face of Gareth.

“Barry,” Gareth said, and a small sliver of terror ran down Barry’s spine.  

Before he had a chance to scramble away, Gareth’s meaty hand came down on Barry’s shoulder. Hard.

“I’ve got a few questions for you,” he grunted. “And you’re gonna answer them, alright?”

Barry nodded, swallowing thickly.

“I’m gonna go and save Madalena from herself and I need you to tell me where to start.”

That was not what Barry had expected. It also hadn’t technically been a question.

“I…what?” He stammered.

Gareth’s lips pressed together into a thin, angry line, his hand tightening on Barry’s shoulder. Barry squirmed in his seat. He wasn’t an idiot, he’d seen the relationship - if it could be called that - that had developed between Gareth and the Queen. But he’d thought it was more physical than anything emotional, even with Wormwood’s continuous gushing over a wedding for the two. The fact that Gareth seemingly wanted to go and get Madalena back proved Barry had been at least somewhat wrong in his assumptions.

“Listen, mate. Everyone else here seems to have forgotten that you worked for that prat, but I haven’t. Wormwood gave Madalena her magic. You must know something about where it all comes from.”

Barry squeaked as the hand on his shoulder tightened again, this time to almost painful levels. He nodded quickly, stuttering out a “yes” before relaxing as Gareth let go and moved a few feet backwards.

“Talk,” he said gruffly.

“Every month, uh, Wormwood would get messages. From the Dark Evil Lord and other subordinates. A...a…sort of ‘what’s happening’ newsletter type thing.” He couldn’t help gesturing, hands moving up and fingers splaying in the air. Gareth rolled his eyes. “The...the messages always came from the hub of dark magic, the DET. You could, um, start there? Maybe?”

Gareth looked at him blankly, waiting for Barry to continue.

“The DET; it’s um the Dark Evil Town,” he clarified.

“Of course it is,” Gareth muttered. “Where is it?”

“I’m not entirely sure…”

Gareth took a step closer and Barry tensed up, holding his hands up in surrender.

“But I know it’s somewhere near Kanencia. A day or two north if I remember right.”

“If you’ve lied to me…” Gareth growled before patting Barry harshly on the shoulder and leaving the wedding planner’s rooms.

Barry let out a sigh of relief, hands shaking as he picked his gold coin up off the floor. He rubbed his shoulder, rolling it up and down to relieve some of the pain Gareth had caused, and leaned back in his chair. He hoped Gareth succeeded in finding Madalena - partly because he didn’t want the man to come back and make good on his threat, and partly because of what he knew about the DEL; not even Madalena deserved what was in store for her.

  
\--

**Present**

_She woke to the sound of someone pounding frantically at her bedroom door. Madalena groaned and opened her eyes, almost squeezing them shut again when she realised dawn hadn’t even broken. Instead, she sighed angrily before swinging her legs out of the bed covers and stumbling to her feet. She padded slowly over to the door and swung it open violently, a scowl already in place, and an acerbic remark ready on the tip of her tongue._

_All annoyance fled from her as she gazed up at the person who had unceremoniously interrupted her sleep._

_“Gareth?” Her voice was barely a whisper._

_He was stood still in her doorway, looking no different to when she’d last scene him despite the months that had passed since Hortensia. Madalena’s fingers twitched by her sides as she resisted reaching out to rest her hands against his chest like she had done so many times in the past. Her heart was beating painfully against her ribcage, panic and relief at his presence warring inside her._

_Gareth stepped forwards and Madalena’s breath hitched in her throat. He shouldn’t be here,_ couldn’t _be here. He reached out towards her and then jerked suddenly, grunting in pain. He staggered._

_“Why, Maddie?” He coughed, before falling forwards and collapsing at her feet._

_“Gareth!”_

_She dropped to her knees beside him, hands grabbing at his shoulders to try and turn him over. He felt wet to the touch, and when she pulled her hands away from his back, her skin was tinted dark red with blood. Madalena gasped, staring blankly at her hands in confusion before a glint of metal caught her eye. A dagger, the same one she’d used to murder Richard’s brother, was protruding almost proudly from the middle of Gareth’s spine._

_“No. No, no, no,” she breathed, panic flooding through her._

_Her hands shook as she reached out for the dagger. Her fingers curled around it and she hissed in pain, yanking her hand back from the burning metal. The dagger glowed briefly, illuminating her room, the light shining off the pool of blood surrounding her. And then her name appeared, etched into the dagger’s hilt, as if proof of her guilt._

_Madalena screamed._

Madalena jolted awake, gasping sharply. She sat up, breaths heavy as she grasped the sheets tightly with her fingers to stop her hands from shaking. She felt sick, her skin was hot and clammy, hair sticking to her face uncomfortably.

She focussed on her breathing, fighting to get it under control. Looking to her window, she sighed at the lack of light filtering through her drapes. Pushing her hair back from her face, she threw back the sheets and staggered from her bed. Madalena knew from the past few months’ worth of experiences that she wouldn’t be able to find sleep again that night, no matter how tired she felt.

The nightmare had come to her every night since she’d left Gareth standing alone on the cliffside in Hortensia. Sometimes it was worse; sometimes she would stab Gareth with the dagger herself, unable to control her actions. Sometimes, she’d use magic she hadn’t even learned to rip the air directly from his lungs. But it always ended the same way; Gareth dead by her hand, both of them surrounded by a pool of his blood.

Some nights, she even woke up to find tears soaking her pillow.

It was pathetic.

Madalena took a deep breath and sighed heavily before tilting her head to each shoulder to work out the kinks in her neck. She snapped her fingers and the candles in her room flickered to life, casting eerie shadows across the walls. She moved slowly over to her wardrobe and began searching through her new dresses without enthusiasm. The Dark Evil Lord was very serious about the appearances of his apprentices, and provided all their clothing for them. Her hand closed round the fabric of a dark red dress - the neckline slightly more modest than most of the gowns the DEL had gifted her with - before pulling it from the wardrobe. She changed quickly, before pinning back her hair and fixing her makeup.

It would be a good few hours until Madalena was expected to break her fast in the dining hall with everyone else. Instead, she grabbed the book she’d borrowed from the DEL’s library from underneath her bed, as well as the small knife she’d pilfered from the kitchens, and headed out of her rooms. The castle halls were deserted at this hour, and Madalena encountered no one as she climbed the stairs towards the battlements. The few men who manned the walls ignored her - they had soon become used to her late night visits and cleverly left her to her own devices.

Ever since her dreams - nightmares - had started, Madalena had felt the intense urge to learn how to fix them. She’d eventually managed to bring the topic to the DEL’s attention, but he had refused to aid her. ‘Healing’ magic was for the weak. Why heal when you could burn? And so Madalena had turned to the castle library for help instead.

She settled down against a far wall, keeping her distance from the patrolling guards as she opened the borrowed book. _The Dark Arts: Light on the Horizon._ It was a rather pretentious title, but the book had, so far, served its purpose. Grabbing the small knife tightly with her right hand, Madalena winced as she lifted her sleeve and dragged the blade over her other arm. The cut was shallow, but it was still deep enough to draw blood. Dropping the knife to the stone beside her, she focussed, trying to bring forth the light magic that apparently existed alongside the dark. Her hand glowed slightly, and the blood dripping from her arm slowed, but the cut remained.

“Come on,” she whispered angrily to herself.

She tried again, fingers of her right hand tensing as she tried to force out the healing magic. The white light surrounding her hand stuttered, and Madalena clenched her teeth tightly, trying to think of happy memories. The cut on her arm slowly began to close and Madalena breathed out a sigh of relief; a thin, pink scar remained, but it was better than nothing.   

She stood up, the book tumbling off her lap and clattering to the floor, and turned to look out over the battlements. The slight breeze coming from the East was calming against her face. Madalena leant forwards, elbows resting on the lower stones of the wall, not caring how ungraceful she looked with her shoulders slumped. She wasn’t a queen here, she held no power. And as long as she wasn’t in the Lord’s presence, she could slouch as much as she wanted.

The longer she stayed with the DEL in his castle, the more she felt betrayed by her own mind. Ultimate power tasted _powerful_ , for lack of a better word. She could call forth fire, teleport, control the minds of others. And there was still more to learn. Her desire to conquer and rule the Seven Realms hadn’t changed, but the longer it took her to learn from the DEL, the more she began to miss how it had felt to rule a kingdom as queen. Patience had never been her strongest trait. And though her nightmares were a constant reminder, Madalena forced herself to ignore how much the enjoyment of ruling Valencia had been due to the ruthless king who’d ruled by her side.

Her head thumped down onto her hands. Madalena knew she was a mess. Giving up love - not that she’d ever truly loved Galavant - for power the first time had worked spectacularly. She’d become a queen to a weak-willed man, and ruled over two kingdoms. The second time hadn’t worked out quite the way she’d planned. Madalena had never bowed down to anyone in her life. She’d always felt like she held all the cards. But now? Now one wrong move could end very, very badly for her.

**  
**\-- **  
**  


After she'd eaten lunch, Madalena had been called to the DEL’s study to meet with him. When she arrived, she noted a man on his knees by the DEL’s desk, hands and ankles bound, and head covered with a burlap sack. She sighed, not having realised it was that time of the week again. After her first few weeks of training, the DEL had tasked her with killing some random peasant he’d dragged from one of the nearby towns. It was a test, he’d explained, to see if she was still worth training in the Dark Dark Evil Way. And whilst Madalena had zero qualms about murdering for her own pleasure or gain, being _told_ to kill someone was quite different and the weekly murders were starting to become tiresome.

The DEL appeared behind her suddenly in a dark cloud of smoke, and despite herself, Madalena jumped in surprise.

“Good afternoon, my Dark Queen.”

She forced a polite smile. Madalena knew the DEL had given her the title as more of a mockery than an honour; he hardly ever called her by her actual name. Smile in place, she bowed low, knowing exactly where on her body the Lord’s eyesight would be trained.

“Good day, my Lord.”

He moved behind his desk and sat, gesturing for Madalena to take her own seat opposite him. She followed his unspoken command, perching anxiously on the edge of the leather armchair. The Dark Evil Lord leant forwards, clasping his hands together in front of him before smiling worryingly.

“I’ve been training you for a few months now, my Dark Queen,” he said, and the bored tone in his voice set Madalena on edge. “And you’ve been so very promising. There’s a great power in you; one I haven’t seen since my own apprentice days.”

“Thank you, my Lord. It is an honour to hear such words from you.”

She honestly no longer cared about the DEL’s praise, but keeping him happy meant he’d continue to teach her.

“I’ve been training you in the basics, but to move forwards onto more challenging magic, there is one more task you need to complete.”

His smile morphed into a sinister grin and ice slid down Madalena’s spine. She sat up straighter, eyes flicking to the tied up man on the floor to her left who had started struggling against the enchanted ropes that bound him. Her hands clenched together tightly on her lap.

“And what task is that, my Lord?”

With a flick of the DEL’s wrist, the burlap sack twisted off the bound man’s head, disappearing into a cloud of smoke. Madalena gasped, her building sense of dread climaxing and forcing her to push down the nausea that had risen in her stomach.

“You need to kill your one true love.”


	2. Meetings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy!

**Two Weeks Ago**

It was a beautiful morning. The birds were singing sweetly from their trees, a light breeze was rustling gently through the flowers, and the fresh smell of the ocean was wafting through their small house. It was perfect; everything she’d dreamed about since she was a little girl.

“Good morning, my love.”

She turned to face her husband, a bright smile forming across her face.

“Good morning,” she said softly in reply.

He leant down to kiss her, lingering against her mouth.

“I will never tire of kissing you, Isabella,” Galavant sighed before sitting opposite her at the kitchen table.

“Nor I you.”

Together they broke their fast, watching the gulls play in the air above the ocean. It was quiet. It was peaceful. It was perfect.

Until suddenly it wasn't.

Their front door burst open without warning and armed soldiers rushed into the cottage. Caught unaware, their weapons and armour stashed away safely in storage, the soldiers soon surrounded them. Two men grabbed Galavant’s arms, swords to his throat, and when Isabella tried to fight back, a sword appeared against her neck as well.

“What is the meaning of this?” Isabella demanded.

“The Dark Evil Lord demands Sir Galavant meet with him,” one of the soldiers replied.

“Sounds like a nice guy. Why the swords?” Galavant asked bitterly, trying and failing to twist free of his captors’ hold.

“Because he didn't want to risk  you saying ‘no’. Now move it.”

Galavant was shoved roughly towards the open door.

“Isabella!” he cried, struggling against the men who held him to try and reach his wife.

“Galavant!” Isabella cried back.

She ducked under the sword at her neck, elbowing the soldier behind her in the stomach before diving for the nearest man’s sword. One of the other men stopped her, grabbing her by the collar of her dress and smashing a fist into her face. The world went black.

\--

**One Week Ago**

Sid was tired. And wet. And hungry. And everything hurt. They'd been travelling for just over a week, barely stopping, barely doing anything other than riding forwards. It sucked. He spurred his horse forwards to come alongside Gareth.  

“Gareth, my friend,” he started cheerfully. “Can we maybe stop for a bit? There's a tavern right there.”

He pointed to the middle of the village they had just ridden into, where a large building stood, smoke pluming from the chimney, bright light shining from the windows.

“I can smell, oh god, _food_ ,” Sid whined, holding on tightly to the front of his saddle, mouth salivating at the idea of a warm meal.

Gareth slowed his horse down, coming to a stop. Sid copied his movements.

“We’re still a week away from Kanencia,” Gareth said gruffly.

“We’ll be more than a week away soon if we don’t get rest.”

Sid could see the indecision on Gareth’s face. Even though Gareth’s blooming relationship with Madalena had almost ended in the squire’s death, and even though the thought of them together made him feel gross inside, Gareth was still his friend. And right now his friend needed to stop and rest - and Sid was going to make him, even if the large man still terrified the shit out of him.

“Come on,” he said, looking sadly at Gareth. “One night in the tavern. A hot meal now, and another in the morning. With a good night’s sleep behind us, we’ll be good to go the rest of the way.”

Still looking unsure, Gareth glanced between the tavern and the road that led out of the village.

“You’re no use to anyone, least of all Madalena, if you end up dead in a ditch somewhere because you were too exhausted to fight off bandits.”

Gareth’s jaw clenched tightly for a moment before his face relaxed and Sid knew his friend had given in.

“Fine,” he said. “ _One_ night. Then we’re on the road again.”

Sid grinned, spurring his horse into action again with a whooping noise, and all but galloping to the stables beside the tavern. Gareth pulled up beside him as Sid vaulted off his horse and sprinted towards the tavern entrance, leaving the larger man to deal with their horses and gear. He heaved open the heavy wooden door and sighed in relief as the soft sounds of laughter and music hit his ears. The smell of cooking meat washed over him and it took everything within him to stop himself drooling on the spot.

Happily, Sid made his way over to the bar ready to order ale and meat for their dinners, only to jump in shock when someone called his name in a voice far too high pitched to be Gareth’s. He spun round, staggering backwards as he suddenly found his arms full with the body of a woman.

“Isabella?” he gasped.

“Sid, oh my god.”

She squeezed him tighter and Sid returned the hug slowly, still slightly shocked at the Princess’ presence.

“What are you doing all the way out here?” he eventually asked as he pulled back from her, looking around the rest of the tavern. “Where’s Galavant?”

“Ah.”

She winced before grabbing Sid’s hand and dragging him over to a table in the corner of the room. He tried to protest, staring longingly at the bar where the promise of food beckoned him, but Isabella ignored him. With a sigh, he gave in and sat opposite her, brow creasing in confusion. He was about to ask her what was going on when the tavern door slammed open and Gareth finally appeared. Sid shouted his name and waved him over.

“Princess?” Gareth seemed as surprised as Sid had been to see her.

“Gareth?” she replied, her own confusion appearing.

“Gareth?”

Sid and Gareth both turned to find Richard returning from the other side of the bar.

“Richard!” Gareth grinned, clapping his friend on the shoulder and ignoring the ale that spilled over the edges of the mugs in Richard’s hands.

“Sid…” Sid muttered to himself with a sigh, slumping against the back of his seat.

“I left you back at the castle over a week ago. What are you doing here?” Gareth asked, pushing Sid over on the bench so he could sit as well. Richard sat down beside Isabella and handed her one of the mugs of ale.

“Galavant’s been kidnapped,” Isabella explained. “I asked Richard to meet me here so we could get him back.”

“Why would anyone kidnap Galavant?” Sid asked, worry for his old master and friend settling in the pit of his stomach.

Richard and Isabella shared a look before they both glanced over at Gareth. The worry in Sid’s stomach grew.

“The Dark Evil Lord,” Richard finally answered.

“Aw, shit. This is connected to Madalena somehow isn’t it?” Gareth muttered.

He grabbed Richard’s mug and downed the ale in one go, leaving the king to drop his mouth open in annoyance.

“You think Galavant and Madalena are at the same place?” Isabella asked.

Gareth nodded.

“All this doo doo dark magic shit has to be connected, don’t it?”

“We’re on our way to a place called the DET, to see if we can find out more,” Sid interjected, wanting to be a part of the conversation again.

“I managed to track the men that took Galavant to this village, but lost their trail. It’s a good thing we ran into each other when we did.” Isabella smiled, before her face turned more serious. “Though is anyone as worried as I am about what all this means?”

Everyone else nodded grimly.

\--

**Present**

“What?” she said flatly.

The DEL raised an eyebrow, his lips pursing together slightly.

“I mean, pardon, my Lord?”

Madalena smiled forcefully, her eyes flicking down to ‘her one true love’. Galavant glared up at her, shoulders twisting as he tried to loosen the ropes around his wrists. She bit the inside of her cheek and returned her gaze to the DEL as he started speaking.

“I don't get out of the castle much; I'm a very busy man. But even I have heard the tales of Galavant and his one true love Madalena.” He got up from his desk slowly and moved to stand behind Galavant. “Though the songs didn't do you justice, my Dark Queen.”

She winced as the DEL gripped Galavant’s hair and yanked. He tugged the hero’s head back forcefully, causing Galavant to yell through the fabric gagging his mouth. Madalena’s breath hitched.

“To progress in your training, to gain more power than you ever thought possible, to rule the Seven Realms…you need to rip out his heart,” he sneered, fingers tightening painfully against Galavant’s scalp. “And crush it.”

Her own heart skipped a beat in her chest.

“I…see.”

She swallowed, grimacing at the sudden dryness in her throat. Her head was swimming and her hands felt clammy as she grasped them together tightly on her lap, fingers digging into the fabric of her dress.

“I’m not entirely without mercy, I shall allow you time to say goodbye,” the DEL said, his lips quirking into what might have been a smirk. “I have a few other matters to quickly attend to this afternoon anyway. I shall be back soon to witness the completion of your task.”

Madalena bowed her head in acknowledgement and the DEL vanished from the room, black smoke swirling around him. As soon as he was gone, Madalena threw herself from the armchair and rushed to kneel in front of Galavant. She removed the material gagging him, letting the fabric drop around his neck.

“What the hell, Madalena?” he shouted as soon as he could.

“Oh shut up, this is not my fault,” she bit back, sitting back on her heels. “I had no idea this was a thing he'd want me to do and I definitely had no idea he was _this_ behind the times…”

Galavant scoffed and shifted once more against the ropes binding him. He had no chance of escaping, even if the ropes hadn’t been enchanted with the DEL’s own magic.

“I've been in his dungeon for days now, let alone how long it took for them to get me here. Izzy will be well on her way to rescuing me. We just have to buy some time before this guy forces you to kill me.” He paused. “Me: your one true love.”

He laughed, though the sound was empty. Madalena rolled her eyes before leveling a smirk in Galavant’s direction.

“You thought so too not too long ago,” she said.

“Yeah, never been more wrong in my life.” He snorted. “Good thing Gareth’s not here, isn’t it. What would you do then?”

Galavant’s tone of voice was a joking one, but that didn’t prevent the sudden wave of panic that gripped Madalena's insides. She gasped in a breath, diving forwards to grab roughly at Galavant’s shoulders, nails digging into his leather jerkin.

“Don’t tell him about Gareth, _please._ ”

Galavant looked up at her in shock, brow furrowed as he eyed her quizzically for a moment, no doubt thrown by her wide eyes and desperate use of ‘please’.

“Wow...wait. You were actually serious? About Gareth? You lo...no. Weird. That’s...weird.”

He scrunched his nose up, lips pursing together in disgust. Madalena shoved him backwards forcefully before standing and crossing her arms, forcing an air of indifference to her posture.

“Tell the DEL about Gareth and not only will I kill you as painfully as possible, I will destroy everything and everyone you love.” She smiled sweetly at him. “Okay?”

“Does this mean you’re going to help stall and wait for Isabella?” Galavant asked hopefully.

“A few months ago I happily tried to kill you with an undead army…” she deadpanned causing Galavant’s mouth to drop open slightly before he raised his eyebrows and shrugged in agreement. “And besides, if I don't kill you, the DEL will kill you anyway. And _then_ he’d probably kill me for wasting his time.”

“So if you have no qualms about killing me, why haven’t you done it already? You’re holding yourself uncomfortably, Madalena.”

Madalena was once again reminded that Galavant knew her better than almost anyone. She dropped her arms to her side, trying to force the tension from her shoulders. Why _did_ Galavant being here make her feel so uneasy? Why hadn’t she just ripped his heart out as soon as the DEL had asked for it? Why did it matter to her if Gal died, even if it was directly by her hand? She would even get the satisfaction of knowing how heartbroken the tiny Princess would be.

Had loving Gareth turned her soft?

“No,” she muttered to herself, ignoring Galavant’s confused look.

She wasn’t weak. She wasn’t soft. She held ultimate power in her hands, and she would rule all Seven Realms mercilessly. Madalena shook her head and drew in a deep breath of air. And then she leant forwards and plunged her hand straight into Galavant’s chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's going to get darker, next week I'm upping the rating to M. You've been warned. 
> 
> Please comment and kudos if you enjoyed it! :)


	3. Heartless

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update. My new job is very tiring and I was pretty much half asleep all evening. 
> 
> Also, please note the rating of this fic has gone up to M for Mature (due to adult themes such as abuse).

**Present**

Gareth had been right when he'd suspected the DET was going to be a shithole. It was dark and grim, rain clouds threatening to burst, and a weird smell that none of them could place permeated the air. Looming ominously above the town was a large, menacing looking castle. The gloomy atmosphere made them all feel uncomfortable, their skin itching beneath their clothes.

They'd been in the small town for hours and had yet to learn any information they didn’t already know. No one would tell them anything - when Isabella asked them nicely or when Gareth asked them  _ less  _ nicely. They were about to give up and leave to make camp for the night - Sid and Richard refused to sleep in the town itself - when someone whispered to them from the shadows, beckoning with a crooked finger. Gareth gripped the hilt of his sword tightly as the four of them followed the stranger into a dark side alley. 

“Are you here to kill the DEL?” the stranger asked, their croaky voice and hooded cloak disguising everything about them. 

“Who’s asking?” Richard replied. 

“The DEL takes people from our town and a few other nearby settlements. For experiments, for proof of loyalty from his apprentices, for slaves.” Gareth’s fists tightened at the mention of apprentices. “His people took my husband last week.” 

“The apprentices. Do you know what happens to them?” Gareth asked, his voice tight.

If Madalena had gone to train under the DEL like he suspected, she’d be one of the apprentices the stranger spoke of. Whilst anyone with half a brain could guess that the  _ Dark Evil  _ Lord was anything but nice, the confirmation made Gareth tense, eager to get inside the castle and find out what was going on.

“Not for certain.” The stranger shook their head. “But it's rumoured the DEL uses them to increase his own power. He's been a blight on this kingdom for centuries.”  

“Centuries? Not the same man, surely?” Isabella gasped. 

The stranger shrugged. 

“Do you know a way into his castle?” Gareth asked through clenched teeth.

“There are only two ways into that castle. As a captive or as a guest.” 

“Thank you.” Isabella laid a hand on the stranger’s shoulder. “If we find your husband, we’ll help him.”

“I fear it is too late for him. But go save whoever it is you're here to save. Maybe they still have a chance.” 

The stranger pulled their clothes tighter around them and disappeared further into the darkened alley. The four of them were silent for a moment, each lost in their own thoughts. There were a thousand different ways a person could use someone, and though Madalena had willingly left to find more power, Gareth feared the worst. For all they knew, Madalena herself could be dead already. He pushed the thought away, and rubbed a hand over his face. 

“It can't be a coincidence that the DEL took Galavant. It has to have something to do with Madalena.” Richard eventually spoke, and Gareth didn’t miss the reassuring look his friend gave him.

“You don't think…” Sid gasped. “The DEL’s going to get Madalena to kill Galavant?”

“Not if we can stop it,” Gareth grunted. “Now how do we get into the fucking castle?” 

\--

It was an odd sensation to hold someone’s heart in your hand, especially when it was retrieved using magic instead of the usual, conventional tools. It was still beating, still magically connected to its owner, warm and vibrant, its deep red glow casting eerie shadows across the floor. It all made Madalena feel rather sick. Galavant was bent over in front of her, gasping for breath, his bound hands digging into the carpet. He’d screamed when she’d ripped his heart from him, and the sound was still reverberating around in her skull. 

His fingers were twitching against the floor in time with the beating of his heart. She flexed her own fingers, squeezing gently against the red flesh in her palm. Galavant winced, a small strangled noise coming from the back of his throat. 

“What are you waiting for?” he gasped, barely able to speak.

“What does it feel like?” Madalena ignored him, holding his heart up to the light for a better look. “To be heartless?”

“You tell me,” he spat.

She rolled her eyes before walking forwards and crouching down so she could look him in the eyes.  She pouted. 

“I’m really sorry, Gal,” she said softly, and she knew both of them were remembering when she’d last spoken those words, over three years ago in a cathedral full of Richard’s men.

She stood up and squeezed. Galavant started choking, eyes widening in surprise and pain. If she did this, the DEL would give her the power she wanted, the power she  _ needed.  _ She’d finally be able to start her reign of terror over the Seven Realms; she’d never be weak again. And possibly more importantly, the DEL would never learn about Gareth or what he meant to her. 

Galavant’s eyes closed and a small part of Madalena, the part that remembered loving him even as shallowly as she had, cried out in objection. 

_ Hope we can be friends. _

Madalena faltered for a moment and Galavant gasped as the pressure she’d been applying to his heart lessened. She clenched her jaw, drawing in a frustrated breath, and pushed the feeling of weakness aside. If this was what it took to be all powerful and  _ happy _ , she’d do it.

“Stop!” 

Madalena jerked in surprise, almost letting go of the heart entirely. Galavant convulsed, wheezing and greedily drinking down gasps of air, as the pressure disappeared altogether. She turned to face the DEL as he stormed into the room. 

“My Lord?” 

“You lied to me, my Dark Queen.” He smiled venomously and Madalena took an involuntary step backwards, her own heart metaphorically leaping into her throat. 

“I would never, my Lord,” she replied, her voice wavering. 

Madalena’s neck cracked as the Dark Lord took two strides towards her and backhanded her across the face. She cried out, Galavant’s heart tumbling from her hand and causing the man to shudder as it hit the floor. The fact that the DEL had physically taken a hand to her, instead of using his magic, made Madalena’s blood run cold. He pursed his lips, looking at her for a moment, before moving to sit behind his desk. 

With a wave of the DEL’s fingers, Galavant’s heart disappeared from the carpet. Galavant jerked, bound hands pressing against his chest, and he sighed in relief. Madalena took the moment to straighten up and wipe the blood from her freshly split lip with her thumb.

“This man is not your one true love,” the DEL said calmly, but Madalena could see the storm that was brewing behind his eyes. “Who is?”

“I do not know, my Lord.” She prayed her voice sounded as calm to him as it did to her. “I thought Galavant would be enough.”

He hummed in acknowledgement and Madalena internally sighed in relief - until the air around her suddenly dragged her forwards and slammed her face into the DEL’s desk. The Dark Lord grabbed the hair on the back of her head, gripping tightly. 

“Do not lie to me girl. I have been dealing in magic since before your great, great grandparents were born. Do not dare to think you can fool me,” his growled, voice right beside her ear, despite his mouth being nowhere near her. “Can't you see love makes you  _ weak _ ?!”

Madalena swallowed, tears of pain and fear pricking in her eyes as he pulled harder on her hair, forcing her face further against the desk. The air seemed to vanish from around her, and her lungs strained painfully as she struggled to draw breath. Madalena could hear Galavant struggling to get free beside her as the edges of her vision started to darken. 

The Dark Evil Lord wasn't wrong. She was going to die for protecting the only man she'd ever truly loved. Was it even worth it?

Her lungs screamed for air, her chest and throat burning at the lack of oxygen as she gave up trying to breath and slumped against the desk under her. And then suddenly it stopped, and with a final tug, the DEL released her head. She stood up with a throaty gasp, vision blurring, and breathed in deeply. One arm was braced on the desk, the other against the base of her throat. The DEL watched her closely for a moment before his eyes misted and became distant. 

“It seems we have guests. Go clean yourself up, my Dark Queen. You're a mess.” He smiled, before all emotion dropped from his face. “We’ll deal with this later.”

Black smoke curled around him and he was gone. Madalena stumbled forwards and all but collapsed against the wooden desk, biting her bottom lip hard to hold back the sobs that wanted to break free.

“Madalena…?” 

“What?” she choked out harshly, jerking her head round to face him.

“Are you okay?” 

She breathed out slowly, though the sound came out more like a growl. She’d just tried to kill him. Hero types were always the same, and Galavant had only gotten worse since Isabella had come into his life.

“I'm fine,” she spat. 

“He's done that before hasn’t he?”

_ Yes. _

“I said I'm fine,” she yelled, but her throat protested, sending her straight into a pathetic coughing fit.

Once she got her breathing under control, Madalena stood up slowly, wincing as her neck twinged uncomfortably, and smoothed out the wrinkles in her dress. She raised a fist to her mouth and coughed once more before turning to leave as guards entered the room to take Galavant back to the dungeons. She didn’t look back.   
  


\--   
**  
** “This is never going to work,” Sid whined. 

“Shut it,” Gareth hissed, nudging the squire in the shoulder with his elbow.

“When we all die screaming, expect me to remind you I said this wasn't going to work.”

“Sid, it will work,” Isabella whispered. “Now shut up.”

The four of them were stood awkwardly on the drawbridge leading into the DEL’s castle. Isabella and Richard were wearing the finest clothing they’d brought with them, whilst Sid and Gareth were in their usual armour.  

“Halt, who goes there?” one of the castle guards called down to them. 

Sid stepped forwards and coughed nervously. Gareth prayed the kid didn’t blow it. 

“My Lord and Lady request an audience with the DEL,” Sid shouted up to the guard. “They have heard of his great power and have something of interest to discuss with him.”

There was no response from the figures above them and Gareth tensed, his grip on the hilt of his sword tightening and his heart rate rising in anticipation of a fight. They stood there in silence, for what felt like hours, before the portcullis finally slid open and the guards bade them entry. Slowly, they stepped into the courtyard only to be met with a handful of armed guards who, after a brief and tense standoff with Gareth, relieved the four of them of their weapons. They were then led to the grand hall and told to wait. 

After what seemed like an obscenely rude amount of time to Gareth, the grand hall doors opened, and a tall man, clad in dark clothing, entered the room. The DEL. He didn’t look particularly special - a thin and gaunt face, body hidden by folds of black fabric - but his eyes caught Gareth’s attention. They were  _ wrong, _ somehow. His focus on the DEL was interrupted as another figure appeared in the hall. Gareth’s breath caught in his throat, but he otherwise forced himself not to react, elbowing Sid in the side as the squire gasped in shock. 

Madalena was wearing a deep red dress, and in other circumstances Gareth knew it would have looked stunning on her. But Madalena herself looked  _ awful _ . Her skin was pale and washed out. Her posture, whilst regal to the untrained eye, was uncomfortable and Gareth knew her back and shoulders were taut with tension. His jaw clenched, the muscles flexing as he forced his teeth together angrily, when he noticed the split in her lower lip, thinly veiled by a fine layer of makeup. He could tell this place was draining her, and it made him wonder, not for the first time, just how the DEL  _ used _ his apprentices. Madalena was the only other person, aside from the guards, to enter the hall with the DEL, and that alone suggested something that Gareth did not want to dwell on.

He watched as, one by one, she recognised Richard, Isabella, and Sid. And then her eyes met his and Madalena’s mouth dropped open in a silent gasp, chest raising shakily as she breathed. Panic flooded across her face for a brief moment, before she glanced at the DEL and schooled her features, a mild look of disinterest appearing instead. Gareth had seen Madalena worried or nervous in the past, but never so terrified, and it made something heavy sit uncomfortably in the pit of his stomach. 

The DEL started speaking and Gareth forced his eyes off her. 

“Welcome, my guests. I am the Dark Evil Lord, ruler of this glorious kingdom. And to whom do I have the pleasure of speaking?” 

He stepped forwards before bowing low in front of Isabella, grasping her hand lightly and planting a noisy kiss on the back of it. 

“I am Lady Belle and this is my husband, Lord Cooper.” Isabella smiled, curtsying respectfully and managing to prevent any sign of disgust from gracing her face. “We have heard many great tales of your power, my Lord, and request your help to conquer the lands we hail from. I’m sure a price can be arranged.”

Isabella’s smile broadened as she stood from her curtsy, eyes fluttering shamelessly at the DEL. The Dark Lord grasped Richard’s hand in greeting, but his eyes did not stray from the princess. He hummed thoughtfully for a moment before speaking again.

“It is late. And you must have had a long and tiring journey to reach me. Take to my rooms, sleep, and tomorrow we can discuss this intriguing proposition you offer.” 

He bowed a second time, kissing Isabella’s hand once more. She giggled softly, faking shyness and whispering her thanks. 

“My Dark Queen,” he turned to Madalena and Gareth suddenly wanted nothing more than to smash his fist into the DEL’s face at the unexpected and intimate title.  “Please show our guests to their quarters.”

“Yes, my Lord,” she answered, her voice tense but otherwise subservient. 

The uneasy feeling in Gareth’s stomach grew as he watch the interaction; he had never seen Madalena be submissive to anyone. Even when she’d first arrived in Richard’s castle, there had been an air of disobedience to her.

“Oh, and do return to my study when you’re done. We still have that matter to…discuss.”

“Yes, my Lord.” She bowed her head. 

The DEL turned on his heel and stalked out of the hall, his guards following behind him. The air in the room suddenly seemed to vanish as everyone waited for someone else to speak first. Eventually Madalena stepped forwards slightly, eyes sliding over all of them and lingering on Gareth for a moment, before landing on Isabella. He could see her throat move as she swallowed heavily.

“He’s in the dungeon.” 

Her voice was barely a whisper and Gareth couldn’t tell if she was trying to avoid being overheard or if she’d truly changed that much since Hortensia. He wasn’t one to scare easily, but Madalena’s appearance and behaviour had him more than on edge than he could ever remember being. 

“It’s near enough the guest quarters. I’ll show you the way.”

“Wait, you’re helping us?” Isabella asked as Madalena turned to leave. 

“Do you want him to die, Tiny Tot?” Madalena hissed, with a hint of her usual fire. “The dungeons are this way. Be quick about it.”

She stormed off, her dark red skirts swishing around her ankles, without waiting for them to follow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, Gareth and Madalena are finally in the same place. It only took three chapters. What's going to happen now?
> 
> Please comment and kudos if you liked this chapter!


	4. Dungeon Dilemma

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy #GalavantDay. Enjoy this emotional roller coaster ride!

As she lead the four of them through the shadowy corridors of the DEL’s castle, Madalena fought to keep her breathing under control. Deep breaths. Slowly. In and out. She could feel the anxiety rising in her chest and swallowed heavily to force down the nausea. She was  _ not _ going to have a panic attack in front of Richard and Isabella of all people. 

They were obviously all there to rescue Galavant. And that was good - though a small part of her had to push away the disappointment she felt at Gareth not being there to ‘rescue’ her. Her jaw muscles tightened at the thought. Of course he wouldn’t be there for her; she’d betrayed and abandoned him, in pretty much the same way she had Galavant all those years ago. Her teeth ground together as she pushed Gareth from her mind and resumed focussing on her breathing. Slowly. In and out. Madalena would help them free Galavant, and then they’d leave - Gareth with them - and everything could return to normal. The DEL had no reason to doubt her loyalty, and so getting Galavant out of the dungeon and out of the castle would be simple. Everything was going to be completely fine. 

The four of them were whispering behind her, voices low and inaudible. Gareth’s deep voice stood out from the rest and Madalena’s breath hitched at the sound. She swallowed again, biting down on her bottom lip and wincing as it aggravated the unhealed split. She hadn’t had the time nor the focus to try and use her magic to fix the injury, something she’d instantly regretted when she’d seen the barely concealed anger on Gareth’s face as she’d entered the main hall. Gareth. Her breathing sped up. She needed to stop thinking about his presence and focus on getting them all out of the castle and as far away from the DEL and his magic as possible - before it was too late.

One of the pairs of footsteps behind her sped up and all of a sudden Gareth was beside her. Madalena forgot to focus on her breathing. She forgot to breathe at all. 

“Maddie…” his voice was a harsh whisper.

“We’re almost at the dungeons,” she announced in a whisper of her own, loud enough for the entire group to hear.

Gareth grabbed her arm and her eyes flicked up to see the concerned expression on his face. She drew in a shaky breath and redirected her gaze to the floor in front of her.

“Maddie, what the hell’s happened to you?”

“I’m  _ fine, _ Gareth,” she hissed. 

She continued walking, ignoring his grip on her arm and doing her best to ignore everything else about him as well. 

“Don’t start this bullshit with me. It’s damn obvious you’re not fine.”

“Drop it. Please.”

“No. Who did that to your lip?” he growled. 

Gareth’s grip on her arm tightened possessively and she clenched her jaw to hold back the unexpected swell of emotions. She didn’t answer him, instead ripping her arm from his grasp with a curt “none of your business” before speeding up slightly to get back in front of him. When she reached the end of the hallway, Madalena stopped and motioned for them to wait. Around the corner was the entrance to the dungeons, guarded by two of the DEL’s men. She waved her hand, her eyes burning with the telltale sting of D’Dew, and the men collapsed sideways, thudding harshly against the stone floor. 

“What did you do?” Isabella gasped accusingly. 

“Oh don’t get your undies in a twist, Princess. It was just a sleeping spell.” 

She flashed an insincere smile at Isabella, before muttering “come on” and moving to pilfer the keys from one of the now-sleeping guards. Without waiting for the others to follow, Madalena unlocked the dungeon door and slid into the gloomy stairwell. She grabbed an unlit torch off the wall, clicking her fingers to set it ablaze, the conjured firelight flickering ominously off the damp stone walls. The group behind her was whispering again, though this time Gareth didn’t seem to be joining in with the discussion. She ignored them and pushed on into the darkness. 

The main dungeon was vast; cells lined the walls, people in various states of health contained within them, low burning torches casting eerie shadows across the floor. Most of the prisoners seemed to be too far gone to even notice their presence. Madalena had only been down there once before, and she squinted through the darkness, unsure as to where Galavant would be imprisoned. Fortunately, he spotted her first.

“Madalena? Here to finish the job?” he sneered.

She moved over to him, and the light of the torch must have let him notice something about the way she was holding herself, his voice softening when he spoke again.

“What happened? Are you okay?”

“Can people stop asking me that? How do you want me to reply?” she muttered under her breath. “I’m  _ fine. _ ”

“Galavant!” Isabella finally appeared, the others just behind her, and rushed forwards, knocking Madalena to the side to grasp at the bars of Galavant’s cell. 

“Isabella?!” Galavant reached out for her. “I knew you’d rescue me.”

Madalena wrinkled her nose in disgust as the couple kissed through the bars. She not-so-gently passed the torch to Richard and held up the ring of keys. The key for the dungeon was obvious, it’s large size and central position on the ring making its use plain to see, but the individual cell keys were less apparent. She winced. There were a lot of cells in the dungeon. 

“Bloody hell,” she hissed. 

“Don’t you know which key it is?” Richard asked, causing Madalena to sigh involuntarily.

“Yes, I’m just pausing for dramatic effect,” she deadpanned, narrowing her eyes at Richard. 

Isabella whirled on her and snatched the keys from Madalena’s hands. She started frantically trying them in the lock, but to no avail. 

“Can’t you just magic the locks open?” Richard asked. 

Madalena pursed her lips before sucking her tongue over her teeth in annoyance. 

“No, Richard, I can’t. Too many things in the castle can’t be affected by any magic other than the DEL’s.” 

Sid stepped forwards into the torch light. 

“Didn’t you have a plan? Why help us get this far?” he asked suspiciously. 

Madalena pressed her lips together, hands clenching into fists at her sides. It wasn’t as if she had expected them to trust her after everything that had happened in the past, but it was starting to become frustrating - especially since, for once, she was actually trying to save their lives by getting them away from the DEL before he killed them all. 

“Listen, kid,” she spat. “I don’t give a crap about you, or Galavant, or this stupid little rescue mission of yours. But you all need to get out of here, sooner rather than later.” 

She tilted her head to the side and smiled brightly. “Capeesh?” 

Her smile dropped and she looked pointedly at Sid and Richard. 

“Then why are you helping?” 

Madalena hoped the flash of panic that ran through her was missed by the others as Gareth finally broke his silence and spoke from behind her. She’d all but forgotten about his presence. She swallowed, and turned to face him, her eyes automatically finding his. 

The firelight from the torch flickered over them, casting a shadow across Gareth’s face. He was looking at her the same way he had done on the cliff side in Hortensia - right before she’d abandoned him in the desert. Madalena felt any sense of defiance leave her. 

“Because...the longer you’re here, the more likely it is that the DEL finds out who all of you are…” She bit her tongue to prevent the ‘to me’ that threatened to escape. “And if that happens...things would end very, very badly.”

Gareth’s forehead wrinkled in confusion, mouth opening to ask another question.

“The DEL wanted her to kill me,” Galavant interrupted, and Isabella fumbled with the keys at his words. “Something to do with Madalena proving herself worthy to continue training by killing her one true love.”

“And why didn’t you?” Richard asked her in surprise.

“Because he stopped her just in time when he somehow realised I wasn’t the right man,” Galavant answered for her.

Madalena swallowed thickly. Her eyes were still locked with Gareth’s and she could see the realisation dawn on him, his brow raising and his mouth dropping open slightly. He lifted a hand out towards her, but Madalena twisted out of reach. She coughed to clear her throat and moved towards the stairwell. 

“The point is moot,” she said, turning on her heel to face the group. “I didn’t kill him and now you all need to get out of here. So, I’ll keep watch. Keep trying the keys.”

Madalena drew in a deep breath and turned back to the dungeon entrance, moving to the bottom of the stairwell and staring up into the darkness as they began to bicker between themselves behind her. 

“Wait, she tried to kill you?” she heard Sid whisper.

“It’s a long story, Sid.”

“Doesn’t seem long to me,” Richard pushed. 

“Guys, drop it. Something’s not right. Just get me out and let’s go.”

Their continued arguing dropped too low for Madalena to hear. She sighed, wanting to lean against the dungeon wall, but even in the dim light from the torch she could see how disgusting the stone was. She knew he was there before he spoke. 

“Come with us,” Gareth murmured from behind her shoulder.

“I can’t.” 

“If you don’t come, I’m staying.”

The flash of panic returned, this time taking root in the pit of her stomach. 

“What?” she said before she could stop herself. She swallowed, trying to get her thoughts in order. “Are you an idiot?”

He was still stood behind her; close, but far enough away that she couldn’t feel his warmth. 

“Maddie, the only reason I’m here is to save you.”

Her hand flew out to rest against the wall, steadying herself as her breathing quickened. She barely winced at the slimy, damp feeling beneath her palm. He was here for her. Gareth was here for her. Not for Galavant.  _ Why? _

“I don’t need saving,” she breathed. “I chose to be here.” 

_ I chose to leave you. _

Her hand curled against the wall, nails grating against the stones. She heard him take a step closer, close enough that if she turned to face him, there’d be barely an inch between them.

“You need saving from yourself,” he said simply, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. 

She snorted incredulously. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked, wincing as her voice came out a little too shaky instead of the snapping anger she’d intended. 

“From what I heard, I guess you’ve got two options. Come with us. With me. I’ll get you a kingdom. I meant what I said in Hortensia. We may not rule all Seven Realms like you want, but one could be enough.” He paused and Madalena dug her fingers painfully into the stone wall, her other hand closing tightly into a fist, nails leaving crescent shaped marks in her skin. “Or you kill me like the DEL wants. And if he doesn’t end up killing you for some stupid, evil plan, you could rule all Seven Realms. Alone.”

Madalena’s jaw was clenched painfully tight, her throat burning as she blinked furiously to hold back the tears welling up in her eyes. 

“All I’ve ever wanted,” she whispered fiercely. “...is power. And  _ this _ , this is how I get it.”

She heard him draw in a deep breath and it took everything within her to stop herself from turning to face him, to stop from throwing herself into his arms, to stop from begging him to just  _ fucking leave _ and forget she ever existed. 

“If that’s what you really want,” he said, and his voice was unreadable. 

“It is.”

She bit the edge of her tongue - hard - trying to keep herself grounded. 

“Alright then. I’m staying.”

That was apparently all it took to have her turning on him furiously, anger thick in her throat - a stark contrast to the tears clinging to her lower eyelashes. 

“Don’t you get it? If you stay, you die. By  _ my _ hand.”

“And if I leave? What happens to you?” he asked, voice tight.

There was no space between them. He was staring at her angrily and she was sure the expression was matched on her own face. Her hands curled into fists by her sides, desperate to reach out instead and rest against his chest. 

She knew exactly what would happen to her if Gareth left and the DEL found out she’d let them all go. It wouldn’t be pleasant, and it would more than likely result in her death. But in the end, it all came back to her desire to rule mercilessly, ultimate power residing at her fingertips.

“I…” 

“I  _ love  _ you, Madalena,” Gareth growled, and the use of her full name made her anger falter. “I am  _ not _ letting you destroy yourself over this insane need of yours.”

Her hands finally made it to his chest, fingers curling against the leather of his armour, and Madalena was horrified to find that her tears had broken free, slipping down her cheeks in an appalling display of weakness.

“I can’t kill you,” she whispered, voice cracking. 

She breathed in heavily through her nose, eyes moving to meet his as she swallowed the lump of emotion clogging her throat. 

“I struggled enough trying to kill Gal. You...I know I couldn’t do it, Gareth. Please don’t put me in that position.”

The distinct sound of a cell door clunking open brought Madalena back to her senses. She gasped in a breath, hands jerking from Gareth’s chest as if she’d been burned, and took a step away from him. She cleared her throat, furiously swiping the tears from her cheeks, and sent a pleading look in Gareth’s direction before pushing past him to return to the others, a forced smile in place on her face. 

“Took you long enough,” she said, wincing at the sound of her voice. She coughed to clear her throat again, ignoring the inquisitive looks on both Richard and Galavant’s faces. “You won’t be able to go out the front. It’s too well guarded. But I know some of the passages out of the castle.”

Madalena turned back towards the stairwell, avoiding looking directly at Gareth whose face bore a pained yet determined expression. No one moved to follow her. She sighed and rolled her eyes to the top of her head. 

“Come on.”

“Wait, are we seriously still trusting her?”

“Yes, Sid. We are,” Galavant replied, walking towards Madalena. 

“But she…”

“Quiet, Sid.”

Madalena closed her eyes briefly, drawing in a deep a breath, and letting it out slowly through her nose. Without turning back to see if they would decide to follow her, she lead them back out of the dungeon and towards the rear of the castle. 

The corridors were empty, and even though it was late at night Madalena couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very wrong. She pressed on regardless, only stopping once they made it to the final corridor. 

“The door out is behind a tapestry at the end of the hall,” Madalena whispered, finally turning to face the group.

Galavant stepped forwards to stand in front of her. He looked like he was trying to decide on something, brow furrowed in a partial wince.

“Come with us,” he said eventually.

Sid and Isabella made sounds of shock and Madalena almost joined them. Her eyebrows rose in surprise and she briefly wondered if Galavant’s stay in the dungeon had made him insane. 

“Gal, I tried to kill you. And I’m really not all that sorry about it.” She stared at him incredulously. “Now stop wasting time and get out of here.”

“I know why you did it.” His eyes flicked to his right, to where Gareth stood behind him. Madalena straightened, jutting her chin out defiantly at Galavant’s words. “And I don’t want to leave you here with that...man.”

“Aww, Gal,” she said patronisingly. “You do care.”

He ignored her jab and rolled his eyes. 

“The chances of you becoming a powerful and evil sorceress are worryingly high. Considering the amount of shit you’ve put us through with _ out  _ the all powerful magic...I don’t want to risk it.”

She turned her head to the side, tongue pressing into her cheek for a moment before her gaze returned to Galavant. He was looking at her expectantly.

_ Losers vacation. Closers use magic. _

“No,” she said blankly, rushing to continue as Galavant went to speak again. “Even if I wanted to, I can’t. I signed away my soul for this.”

She snapped her fingers, lips turning up into a smirk as Richard and Sid gasped at the flames that sprung from her fingertips. 

“I belong to the DEL,” she continued, extinguishing the fire from her hand.

Gareth stepped forwards to stand beside Galavant. His face was stony, eyes boring into her.

“No one owns you. Especially not that prat.”

She forced down the smile that wanted to appear, and kept her eyes trained on Galavant instead of letting them meet Gareth’s gaze. Time was running out. The longer they spent inside the castle, the sooner the DEL would discover them all. She ignored the part of her that so desperately wanted to flee with them, pushing it away. 

Madalena opened her mouth, not entirely sure what she was about to say, only to be interrupted as guards suddenly appeared at both ends of the hall. Everyone turned to face the men instantly, stances ready for a fight even though no one had their swords. Madalena backed up towards Gareth, panic flooding through her, mind racing with a thousand thoughts as fear gripped at her chest. Her hand slipped easily into his, and her eyes burned with magic. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment and kudos if you enjoyed it! Thanks!


	5. Heartbreak

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not hugely impressed by this chapter. I struggled with it. But I hope it's still up to your standards. Enjoy.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here?” the DEL laughed as he came into view at one end of the hallway.

“Hey, that’s my line,” Richard muttered, causing Isabella to smack him in the chest and hiss at him to shut up. 

One of the guards whispered something to the DEL and the Lord’s eyes turned to Isabella. He looked at her for a moment, a slow smile stretching onto his mouth. 

“So you’re the woman living with Galavant I was told about. It seems I’ve been lied to more than once today,” he said, eyes briefly flicking over to Madalena before returning to the princess. 

Gareth’s hand tightened around hers and Madalena squeezed back. 

“This true love business does get very complicated doesn’t it.”

The DEL watched them all for a moment, gaze dragging over each of their bodies before his eyes finally came to rest on Madalena again. He walked towards her slowly, dark, inhuman eyes boring into hers, and a worrying twist to his lips. And then suddenly his hand shot out to grasp around the top of her throat, his fingernails digging into her skin. She gasped, eyes widening in fear and pain as the DEL cut off her access to air. 

Gareth’s hand tore from hers as he surged forwards to rip the DEL away from her. He never made contact; the DEL flicked his free hand and sent Gareth crashing into the wall. Madalena watched helplessly as he crumpled to the floor, her hands scrabbling against the DEL’s wrist to no avail. The others made to move, but the Dark Evil Lord jerked his head and the guards surrounding them levelled their swords at everyone’s throats. 

Black spots began to appear in her vision and Madalena’s arms dropped limply to her sides. With a snort of air from his nose, the DEL dropped his hand from her throat. Madalena staggered, only just managing to remain upright as she gulped down air. She kept her eyes trained on the DEL, despite her desperate need to check if Gareth was still breathing, and clamped her jaw shut, trying to keep her emotions from showing on her face. Her heart was beating furiously in her chest. It skipped a beat as Gareth groaned, pushing himself off the floor to sit against the stone wall. A nearby guard directed his sword at Gareth’s neck.

“My guests - not in their rooms. Galavant - out of his cell. And my Dark Queen leading them to a secret passageway out of the castle. Well, you can see how bad this looks, can’t you  _ Madalena _ ?” his voice was calm, amused even, but the DEL’s eyes were a storm of fury. 

They were all going to die. 

The DEL raised a hand, reaching out to trail a finger down Madalena’s cheek, before grasping the bottom of her face roughly. 

“Now, what are we going to do about all this?”

His thumb shifted to run over the split in her lip. She winced, an unbidden noise of pain escaping from the back of her throat. Gareth stumbled to his feet, the guard’s sword rising with him, and made to step towards her. The sword didn’t budge, and a thin line of blood appeared on Gareth’s neck as the metal cut into his skin. Madalena gasped as she felt something burn against her own throat. The DEL dropped his hand from her face, his expression failing to conceal his disbelief. 

“What did you do?” he snarled at her. 

Madalena remained silent - partly in defiance, and partly because she truly had no idea what the DEL was asking of her. She cried out, her head whipping to the side, as he backhanded her across the face, splitting open her lip for the second time that day. Gareth grunted, and Madalena’s eyes opened to find a cut appearing on his lip as well. 

“Wha…” she gasped.

“What is going on?” Richard asked tentatively.

“It seems you are even more powerful than I thought,” the DEL muttered, almost appreciatively, to Madalena. “I’ve never seen someone able to cast this spell without intense practice and training…”

“A spell?” she breathed.

“It seems, my Dark Queen, that you’ve bound your life force with this man’s,” he explained,  turning from her to walk towards Gareth. “If one of you sustains injury, so does the other. If one of you dies, you both die.”

Madalena inhaled sharply, eyes darting up to meet Gareth’s. His expression was livid, though she knew the anger was directed towards the DEL and not at her. A disconcerting smile appeared on the the DEL’s face. 

“Interesting,” he said, turning to face his guards. “I need time to figure out how to reverse this. Take them to the dungeons.”

He looked pointedly at Madalena.

“ _ All _ of them.”

Then he turned with a flourish of his cloak, striding down the corridor and disappearing mid-step into his usual cloud of black smoke. 

\--

Gareth was beyond furious - at their situation, at the Dark Evil Prat, and at Madalena. He’d been pacing angrily by the bars of his cell since he’d been locked inside it. Madalena was in the cell next to his, sat on a stool, pretending not to watch him pace back and forth. Galavant and Isabella, in two cells opposite his and Madalena’s, had been trying to escape for the past hour with no success. Sid had proudly proclaimed “I told you so” before sitting down sullenly to watch their attempts. Richard was sulking after his endeavours to help the couple had resulted in them both snapping exasperatedly at him. 

“Ahrg!” Galavant’s angry shout echoed through the dungeon as he fell off the bars of his cell, landing unceremoniously on his arse. “This is hopeless…”

“Hey, Madalena,” Isabella leant against the bars of her own cell. “Can’t you just use magic to get us out of this?”

Madalena’s head shot up and she squinted through the darkness. Without a sound, she held up her right wrist to show a shackle locked around it, a faint black glow emanating from the metal.

“The DEL’s not stupid,” she said, a slight bite to her words, and Gareth could almost hear the ‘ _ And neither am I _ ’. “It’s enchanted to stop me from D’Dew-ing anything.”

She smiled wryly at her own pun. Gareth rolled his eyes and continued pacing.

“How do we know this wasn’t your plan all along? That you didn’t just trick us?” Richard stood up in his cell, moving nearer to Isabella. 

“Oh Richard, shut up,” Madalena snapped. “If I’d been tricking you, I wouldn’t be sat in this filthy, disease ridden dungeon, magically shackled to a wall, forced to listen to you losers complain…”

She yanked on the chain and Gareth felt his right wrist burn uncomfortably.

“Could be part of your plan to trick us…” Richard muttered. 

Madalena yanked on the chain again and the burning in Gareth’s wrist intensified. He clenched his jaw together. 

“Shut up, Richard,” he grunted through his teeth. 

“Oh yeah, defend her why don’t you,” Richard replied childishly. 

“Shut up, Richard,” Galavant chimed in. “Madalena isn’t tricking us. What would be the point?”

The two men started bickering, and Isabella - caught in the middle cell between them both - threw her hands up in exasperation before slumping down onto her own stool. Gareth’s wrist was suddenly on fire. He inhaled sharply through his nose, turning angrily to look at Madalena. 

“Stop it,” he hissed and Madalena’s head jerked up to face him. 

He looked meaningfully at her chains and his wrist, and Madalena’s eyes widened with realisation. She dropped the metal and turned away from him again. Gareth sighed. 

“Why did you do it?” he whispered, gesturing between them with a flick of his finger.

He could see her bite her lip and he exhaled heavily when he tasted blood in his mouth. He didn't know if she was doing it to punish herself for something or if the pain helped her to focus, but it was heightening his anger towards her.

“Maddie!” he shouted, lowering his voice when he noticed Galavant jerk his head round to watch them. “Stop hurting yourself.”

She jumped, hands fidgeting in her lap, and Gareth sighed again. She was panicking, on the edge of an anxiety attack. He recognised the signs all too well, already use to calming her down when she got worked up - about her emotions, about Isabella, about failure. 

“You used your magic by accident, didn't you?” he asked, keeping his voice low and calm. 

“I didn’t know I was doing it,” she hissed. “I panicked and my magic must have panicked as well…”

She paused, her eyes flicking up to look at him before darting back to the floor in front of her.

“I didn’t want him to hurt you…” he heard the tone in her voice, the tight forced sound hinting that she was holding back tears. 

His anger, which had already been slowly fading away, drained instantly at her words. He didn't know when he'd stopped pacing, but now he was standing still in the middle of his cell, staring intently at where Madalena was hunched over on her stool, fingers clenched tightly in the fabric of her dress. He’d never been a hugging person, even hugging Richard still made his skin crawl, but right now he really wanted Madalena to be in his arms. 

“We’ll get out of this,” he mumbled, moving to stand at the bars that separated them. “And then I’m going to kill that bastard for touching you.”

Madalena gasped and her head jerked up, eyes flying up to find his. Sat in a dirty cell, blood smeared on her neck and a split lip, she looked so unlike the bitch Queen he’d fallen in love with, but his heart still flumped in his chest at the sight of her. Gareth wasn’t lying; he was going to kill the DEL and he was going to enjoy it.

Madalena stood up and moved as close to Gareth as she could without pulling the chain attached to her wrist. She stood staring at him for a moment, before looking at the distance between them and angrily yanking on the chain, causing both their wrists to burn. 

And then suddenly, Madalena’s eyes widened as something dawned on her. She smiled.

“The keys,” she said simply. 

“What?” 

“Tiny Tot!” Madalena shouted across the dungeon and Gareth could hear Isabella mutter something about murder. “Did you leave the keys in the cell door?”

“I…yes. Yes!” Isabella grasped the bars at the front of her cell. “If we can get them…”

“We can get out of here,” Galavant finished her sentence. 

\--

It took them two more hours, and a lot arguing back and forth, to figure out which cell had been Galavant’s and to fashion a lasso from clothing and straw thrown between them all. Galavant’s previous cell was closest Gareth’s current one, meaning it was down to him to grab the keyring and get them out of the dungeon. 

It wasn’t going well. 

It didn’t help that Madalena had started pulling on her chain again in what Gareth could only assume was frustration. She was distracting him, in more ways than one, and it was throwing off his aim. 

“Maddie…” he ground out, but she ignored him and the burning only intensified. 

He whirled around, dropping the shoddily built rope at his feet – keys momentarily forgotten - and stormed to the bars separating their cells. She continued to ignore him, pointedly staring in the opposite direction. His previous anger towards her hit him again, back in full force, and he was speaking before his brain could register the words and stop him.

“Can you  _ for once _ in your life stop sulking because something didn’t turn out the way you wanted it to?”

“What’s that supposed to mean,  _ Gareth _ ,” she hissed, spitting his name and finally turning to look at him.

She stood up furiously, attempting to fold her arms across her chest before realising the shackle around her wrist made the action too uncomfortable. She dropped her arms back down to her sides, fingers clenching tightly into fists. He could feel the impressions of her nails in his own palms. 

“You’ve lost again and now you’re sulking like a kid, only because you can’t run away again.”

He was being unfair and he knew it. Regardless of her reasons for doing so, she’d tried to help the others free Galavant, and now she was at as much risk as the rest of them. But he was angry and upset, and she was the easiest target for his emotions. 

“I’m _ sorry _ ? Is that what this is? You’re still sore about Hortensia?”

“Am I sti...Of course I’m still ‘sore about Hortensia’!” he growled, pitching his tone higher at the end of the sentence to mock her voice. 

“Well, maybe you shouldn’t have rejected me for  _ Richard _ of all people!” she spat angrily.

He faltered at that, not realising she’d seen it that way - that she thought he’d chosen Richard’s friendship over their...whatever they were.

“You promised you wouldn’t bring magic into it, and then you  _ lied _ to me when you went ahead and got it anyway. And look where that magic’s gotten you. Where it’s gotten all of us.”

“How dare you! This isn’t my fault!” She took a furious step towards him, jerking back slightly as the chain attached to her shackled wrist tightened to its full length. Her eyes flashed dangerously in the torchlight. “You’re the one who Galavant-ed right into danger, like a bloody stupid hero.”

“Yeah, to save  _ you.”  _ He ignored her Galavant jab, his hands tightening around the bars, knuckles turning white, and he knew she’d be able to feel the painfully tightening skin on her own hands.

“Well congrats, because now you’re going to die!” she yelled, voice cracking ever so slightly, and Gareth knew he’d hit a nerve. 

“And thanks to your stupid dark magic, if I die, so do you!” 

“Are you blaming me for this?” she asked incredulously.

“Yeah. I am. You’re the one who left.” 

He  _ was  _ blaming her for this. He’d  _ forgiven  _ her for lying to him, betraying him, almost getting him killed, and she’d thrown it back in his face by vanishing in a cloud of sand. 

“And I didn’t ask you to follow,” she hissed, the burning on his wrist spiking as she wrenched her arm against the shackle to, once again, try and get closer to the bars separating them.

“You didn’t have to.”

“No, this is your fault, Gareth. You started all of this in the first place!” 

“How is  _ any  _ of this my fault?” he growled. 

“I was quite happy plotting to invade all Seven Realms, and then you had to come along and fuck it all up.”

“I was already there. I was there before you!”

“But you ruined everything!”

“Because I fell in love with you?” he shouted disbelievingly. 

“No,” Madalena cried. “Because I fell in love with you!”  

They were staring furiously at each other. Gareth was beyond angry - at Madalena, at her ridiculous and dangerous obsession for power, and at the fact that the metal bars between them and the chain holding her back meant he couldn’t just grab her and kiss her. And if the look on her face, and the way she was still tugging at the chain, was any indication, she felt the same way.

“Uh…guys?” Galavant’s voice broke through Gareth’s angry haze. “Do you maybe want to save this, frankly quite disturbing, domestic until  _ after _ we get out of the crazy wizard’s dungeon?”

Gareth had almost entirely forgotten about the others. He sent a glare in Galavant’s direction, even though it was probably too dark for the knight to truly appreciate.

“Whatever,” Madalena snapped, sitting down heavily on her stool and suddenly looking disinterested in everything – which meant that she was incredibly embarrassed about the situation.

Gareth let out a heated breath, releasing his hands from the bars and flexing them slightly, before rubbing a hand over the back of his head. He turned away from Madalena, and returned to the makeshift rope he’d abandoned on the floor. He picked it up and started aiming for the key ring again.

“Did that really just happen?” Richard asked, obviously trying to whisper but failing. 

“You knew they were a thing…” Sid replied, but he sounded just as weirded out as Richard.

“Yeah but knowing it and hearing  _ that  _ is entirely different.”

“Is this really important right now?” Isabella’s tone was sharp but weary. 

“Yes, it is. I was married to that woman. And she was a cold hearted harpy.”

“You know I can hear you, horse breath,” Madalena muttered. 

“See!” Richard shouted. “The idea of her and Gareth is just…”

“Richard?” Gareth bit out tersely.

“Yeah?”

“Shut. Up.”

\--

“Gotcha!” Gareth yelled when the makeshift rope finally looped around the keyring. 

He gave the rope a heavy tug and the keyring came flying out of the lock, skittering across the floor and stopping right in front of Gareth’s cell. The others cheered as he bent down and retrieved the keys. He quickly set to work figuring out which key opened his cell door, and soon he was across the dungeon, opening Sid’s, then Richard’s, then Isabella’s, and ending with Galavant’s door - thankful that the keys were in some sort of order, only having to take a few tries before he found the correct one for each cell. 

Finally, he turned back to open Madalena’s cell, only to stop at the look on her face. She was smiling sadly at him, a stark contrast to the pure fury on her face during their argument. He walked slowly up to her cell, confused until her eyes flicked down to the shackle around her wrist, and for the first time Gareth realised there was no key hole in the metal. 

“Even if you unlock the door, I’m still stuck in here,” she murmured, eyes locking with his. 

“You knew. All this time.” 

She nodded, maintaining their eye contact and biting her lip softly. 

“Why didn’t you say something? We could have figured it out.” 

Gareth felt the unfamiliar sensation of panic welling up in his stomach. He swallowed heavily and started shoving a key into the lock. Madalena pressed her lips together before smiling at him again, and Gareth’s chest felt tight at the sight of it. 

“Go. He won’t kill me. I think he needs me. For something, I don’t know what. But you need to get out of here before he figures out how to fix this mess.” 

She gestured between them with the fingers of her unshackled arm. 

“Gareth, we need to leave. Now,” Galavant called across the dungeon. “What’s taking so long?”

“I’m not leaving you in this shithole,” Gareth growled at Madalena, shoving another key into the cell door. “I came here to get you, not leave you with that prat up there.”

Madalena took a deep breath. 

“I love you,” she sighed, and Gareth’s head shot up to look at her again; but Madalena was already looking over his shoulder at the others gathered by the base of the stairs. “Go. Take Gareth with you. Drag him out if you have to. I’m sure between the four of you morons you can figure something out.”

The lock clicked open with the third key and Gareth wasted no time in wrenching the door open. But instead of rushing forwards and pulling Madalena into his arms as he’d originally intended, Gareth remained still, standing dumbly in front of her, unsure of how to continue. 

“Gareth...” she breathed out, and his name sounded exactly the same as her previous ‘I love you’. 

Neither of them moved. Unshed tears were glistening in Madalena’s eyes, and she looked just as torn as she had been when she’d confessed her love for him in Hortensia. He was about to take the plunge and step forwards when Richard grabbed his arm roughly. 

“We have to go, Gareth.” 

He knew they had to leave, he knew he had no choice. If he stayed he couldn’t help her. But that didn’t make turning around and leaving any easier. 

“I’m not leaving you here, Queenie,” he said, forcing as much conviction as he could into his voice. “I’ll come back for you.”

A smile flickered shakily at the edges of her mouth at his use of the nickname, before she mouthed the word ‘go’ and averted her gaze. With one final look at Madalena, whose tears had started falling down her cheeks, he clenched his jaw and left her behind. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment and kudos. Let me know what you thought of this chapter, because (as I said at the start) I'm not sure of this one. 
> 
> Also, I apologise but updates for this fic might slow a little, as Mass Effect Andromeda Early Access starts on Thursday so free time will be mainly spent on that. But I'm still gonna try and keep to Sunday updates. We'll see.


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